MassVoter.com← NeedhamMunicipal votes · 2023–2024 Board
Needham Select Board
How the Needham Select Board voted, from the Select Board’s official minutes. 5 Select Board members elected townwide. Catherine Dowd joined the board after the April 2023 town election (Marianne Cooley re-elected); Matthew Borrelli left. On April 12, 2023 Marcus Nelson declined the nomination for Chair, and the board chose Marianne Cooley as Chair, Kevin Keane as Vice Chair and Heidi Frail as Clerk (each 5-0). Covers 30 meetings, April 12 to April 2, 2024.
A monthly email on what it voted on, starting in November.
What does the Select Board do? It is the town’s executive board. It prepares the Town Meeting warrant (the list of articles voters decide), appoints members of many town boards, hires the town’s top staff, signs warrants to pay town bills, and grants licenses and permits.
Town Meeting, not the Select Board, votes the town budget and town bylaws.
Sources: Massachusetts Select Board Handbook (MMA) · Mass. Division of Local Services: the town budgetBoard years
Coming up
MassVoter can’t read Needham’s meeting calendar automatically yet. See upcoming meetings on the official site →
Members
Vice-ChairKevin KeaneVice Chair · Elected townwide · at 30 of 30 meetings
Catherine Reid DowdMember · Elected townwide · at 29 of 30 meetings
Heidi FrailClerk · Elected townwide · at 30 of 30 meetingsMarcus NelsonMember · Elected townwide · at 26 of 30 meetings"At X of Y meetings" counts the members the minutes list as present at the start of each meeting in this record. Members who step out are listed on each meeting page.
Meetings
About missing minutes
Loaded: Select Board minutes (called the Board of Selectmen until 2019) from January 9, 2018 through August 3, 2026, from the town’s online Archive Center, which holds Select Board minutes back to 2006 (MassVoter has loaded 2018 on). Joint meetings with other boards are included, but only the Select Board’s own votes. Not here: executive-session minutes; minutes of the board’s two-member subcommittees; minutes the town has not posted for 23 other meeting dates that have an agenda in the Archive Center: March 13, April 9 and April 24, 2018; March 26, 2019; April 29, 2020 (joint meeting with the Council of Economic Advisors), August 11, 2020 (joint meeting with the Affordable Housing Trust), November 3, 2020 (executive session) and November 19, 2020; March 15, April 27, October 21, October 25, November 16 (executive session), November 23, November 30 and December 14, 2021; October 24 and November 9, 2022; January 9, January 18 and October 30, 2023; November 25, 2024; and June 23, 2025; and every meeting after August 3, 2026 (the town usually posts minutes about two months after a meeting). The minutes are typed PDFs with a text layer, except 2 scanned files from 2018–2019 that MassVoter read with text recognition. Needham’s minutes give the mover and seconder of each motion and the result, almost always with a count (“Unanimously approved 5-0”, “Approved 4-1, with Mr. Levy against”), and sometimes a roll call by name. When the minutes say the vote was unanimous and the count matches the members present, we show every member present as voting yes; when they name the members who voted no or abstained and the count adds up, everyone else present is shown voting yes. Where a count does not match the members the minutes show as present, or a split count does not say who voted which way, we show the count only and add a note. Members who stepped aside (recused), had not yet arrived or had left are left out of that vote. We will ask the town to confirm any noted vote.
Votes where members disagreed
Most board votes are unanimous. These are the ones where at least one member voted no or abstained, newest first.
Apr 2Approve the Appointment Calendar item 5Motion: the Board vote to approve the Appointment Calendar item 5.Passed 4–0 · see note
April 2, 2024: Approve the Appointment Calendar item 5
The Board vote to approve the Appointment Calendar item 5.
The minutes say "Approved 4-0.", but 5 members were present for this vote (Marianne B. Cooley, Kevin Keane, Heidi Frail, Marcus Nelson and Catherine Reid Dowd). Showing the count only.
From the minutes
“Motion by Mr. Keane that the Board vote to approve the Appointment Calendar item 5. Second: Mr. Nelson. Approved 4-0..” (Motion: Keane, second: Nelson)
Mar 26Approve the Appointment Calendar and Consent Agenda as presentedMotion: the Board vote to approve the Appointment Calendar and Consent Agenda…Passed 4–0 · see note
March 26, 2024: Approve the Appointment Calendar and Consent Agenda as presented
The Board vote to approve the Appointment Calendar and Consent Agenda as presented.
The minutes say "Unanimously approved 4-0.", but 5 members were present for this vote (Marianne B. Cooley, Kevin Keane, Heidi Frail, Marcus Nelson and Catherine Reid Dowd). Showing the count only.
From the minutes
“Motion by Mr. Keane that the Board vote to approve the Appointment Calendar and Consent Agenda as presented. Second: Ms. Dowd. Unanimously approved 4-0..” (Motion: Keane, second: Dowd)
Feb 27Approve the Appointment Calendar and Consent Agenda as presentedMotion: the Select Board vote to approve the Appointment Calendar and Consent…Passed 3–0 · see note
February 27, 2024: Approve the Appointment Calendar and Consent Agenda as presented
The Select Board vote to approve the Appointment Calendar and Consent Agenda as presented.
The minutes say "Unanimously approved 3-0.", but 4 members were present for this vote (Kevin Keane, Heidi Frail, Marcus Nelson and Catherine Reid Dowd). Showing the count only.
From the minutes
“Motion by Ms. Dowd that the Select Board vote to approve the Appointment Calendar and Consent Agenda as presented. Second: Ms. Frail. Unanimously approved 3-0..” (Motion: Dowd, second: Frail)
Nov 14Approve and sign a petition from Eversource Energy to…Motion: the Select Board approve and sign a petition from Eversource Energy…Passed 4–0 · see note
November 14, 2023: Approve and sign a petition from Eversource Energy to install approximately 45 feet of conduit in South Street
The Select Board approve and sign a petition from Eversource Energy to install approximately 45 feet of conduit in South Street.
The minutes say "Unanimously approved 4-0.", but 5 members were present for this vote (Marianne B. Cooley, Kevin Keane, Heidi Frail, Marcus Nelson and Catherine Reid Dowd). Showing the count only.
From the minutes
“Motion by Ms. Frail that the Select Board approve and sign a petition from Eversource Energy to install approximately 45 feet of conduit in South Street. Second: Ms. Dowd. Unanimously approved 4-0..” (Motion: Frail, second: Dowd)
Nov 14Approve and sign a petition from Eversource Energy to…Motion: the Select Board approve and sign a petition from Eversource Energy…Passed 4–0 · see note
November 14, 2023: Approve and sign a petition from Eversource Energy to install approximately 8 feet of conduit in La Salle Road
The Select Board approve and sign a petition from Eversource Energy to install approximately 8 feet of conduit in La Salle Road.
The minutes say "Unanimously approved 4-0.", but 5 members were present for this vote (Marianne B. Cooley, Kevin Keane, Heidi Frail, Marcus Nelson and Catherine Reid Dowd). Showing the count only.
From the minutes
“Motion by Ms. Dowd that the Select Board approve and sign a petition from Eversource Energy to install approximately 8 feet of conduit in La Salle Road. Second: Ms. Frail. Unanimously approved 4-0..” (Motion: Dowd, second: Frail)
Nov 14Approve the Appointments and Consent Agenda as presentedMotion: the Select Board vote to approve the Appointments and Consent Agenda…Passed 4–0 · see note
November 14, 2023: Approve the Appointments and Consent Agenda as presented
The Select Board vote to approve the Appointments and Consent Agenda as presented.
The minutes say "Unanimously approved 4-0.", but 5 members were present for this vote (Marianne B. Cooley, Kevin Keane, Heidi Frail, Marcus Nelson and Catherine Reid Dowd). Showing the count only.
From the minutes
“Motion by Mr. Keane that the Select Board vote to approve the Appointments and Consent Agenda as presented. Second: Ms. Frail. Unanimously approved 4-0..” (Motion: Keane, second: Frail)
Nov 14Approve and sign an application for a Change of…Motion: the Select Board, as Liquor Licensing Authority, approve and sign an…Passed 4–0 · see note
November 14, 2023: Approve and sign an application for a Change of Manager to Brian McGrath for Sheraton Boston Needham Hotel, 100 Cabot Street, Needham and to forward this application to the ABCC…
The Select Board, as Liquor Licensing Authority, approve and sign an application for a Change of Manager to Brian McGrath for Sheraton Boston Needham Hotel, 100 Cabot Street, Needham and to forward this application to the ABCC for approval.
The minutes say "Unanimously approved 4-0.", but 5 members were present for this vote (Marianne B. Cooley, Kevin Keane, Heidi Frail, Marcus Nelson and Catherine Reid Dowd). Showing the count only.
From the minutes
“Motion by Ms. Dowd that the Select Board, as Liquor Licensing Authority, approve and sign an application for a Change of Manager to Brian McGrath for Sheraton Boston Needham Hotel, 100 Cabot Street, Needham and to forward this application to the ABCC for approval. Second: Mr. Keane. Unanimously approved 4-0..” (Motion: Dowd, second: Keane)
Oct 10Approve the sale of $2,282,000 in bond anticipation notes…Motion: the Board approve the sale of $2,282,000 4.00 percent General Obligation…Passed Unanimous, 5 present · see note
October 10, 2023: Approve the sale of $2,282,000 in bond anticipation notes and related votes (Motions A-F)
The Board approve the sale of $2,282,000 4.00 percent General Obligation Bond Anticipation Notes of the Town dated October 16, 2023 and payable July 30, 2024 (the "Notes"), to Fidelity Capital Markets, a Division of National Financial Services LLC, at par and accrued interest, if any, plus a premium of $2,418.92.
The minutes list six motions (A-F) made by different members (Mr. Keane, Mr. Nelson, Ms. Frail and Ms. Dowd) and record one vote for all of them ("Second for all motions: Ms. Frail. Unanimously approved 5-0."), so no single mover is shown.
From the minutes
“Motion A by Mr. Keane that the Board approve the sale of $2,282,000 4.00 percent General Obligation Bond Anticipation Notes of the Town dated October 16, 2023 and payable July 30, 2024 (the "Notes"), to Fidelity Capital Markets, a Division of National Financial Services LLC, at par and accrued interest, if any, plus a premium of $2,418.92. Motion B by Mr. Nelson that in connection with the marketing and sale of the Notes, the preparation and distribution of a Notice of Sale and Preliminary Official Statement dated September 20, 2023, and a final Official Statement dated September 27, 2023, each in such form as may be approved by the Town Treasurer, be and hereby are ratified, confirmed, approved and adopted. Motion C by Ms. Frail that the Town Treasurer and the Select Board be, and hereby are, authorized to execute and deliver a significant events disclosure undertaking in compliance with SEC Rule 15c2-12 in such form as may be approved by bond counsel to the Town, which undertaking shall be incorporated by reference in the Notes for the benefit of the holders of the Notes from time to time. Motion D by Ms. Dowd that we authorize and direct the Town Treasurer to establish post issuance federal tax compliance procedures and continuing disclosure procedures in such forms as the Town Treasurer and bond counsel deem sufficient, or if such procedures are currently in place, to review and update said procedures, in order to monitor and maintain the tax exempt status of the Notes and to comply with relevant securities laws. Motion E by Mr. Keane that any certificates or documents relating to the Notes (collectively, the "Documents"), may be executed in several counterparts, each of which shall be regarded as an original and all of which shall constitute one and the same document; delivery of an executed counterpart of a signature page to a Document by electronic mail in a ".pdf" file or by other electronic transmission shall be as effective as delivery of a manually executed counterpart signature page to such Document; and electronic signatures on any of the Documents shall be deemed original signatures for the purposes of the Documents and all matters relating thereto, having the same legal effect as original signatures. Motion F by Mr. Nelson that each member of the Select Board, the Town Clerk and the Town Treasurer be and hereby are, authorized to take any and all such actions, and execute and deliver such certificates, receipts or other documents as may be determined by them, or any of them, to be necessary or convenient to carry into effect the provisions of the foregoing votes. Second for all motions: Ms. Frail. Unanimously approved 5-0..”
Jun 27Appoint Arthur Tzouros to the Board of Assessors until…Motion: the Select Board and Board of Assessors vote to appoint Arthur…Passed Unanimous, 4 present · see note
June 27, 2023: Appoint Arthur Tzouros to the Board of Assessors until the next Town Election
The Select Board and Board of Assessors vote to appoint Arthur Tzouros to the Board of Assessors until the next Town Election.
A joint vote of the Select Board and the Board of Assessors ("Unanimously approved 6-0 by roll call vote of both Boards."); the count includes the Board of Assessors. The minutes call it unanimous, so each Select Board member present is shown voting yes.
From the minutes
“Motion by Mr. Keane that the Select Board and Board of Assessors vote to appoint Arthur Tzouros to the Board of Assessors until the next Town Election. Second: Ms. Frail. Unanimously approved 6-0 by roll call vote of both Boards..” (Motion: Keane, second: Frail)
Apr 25Withdraw Article 28 - APPROPRIATE FOR QUIET ZONE from…Motion: the Select Board vote to withdraw Article 28 - APPROPRIATE FOR…Passed 4–1 · No: Nelson
April 25, 2023: Withdraw Article 28 - APPROPRIATE FOR QUIET ZONE from the Annual Town Meeting Warrant
The Select Board vote to withdraw Article 28 - APPROPRIATE FOR QUIET ZONE from the Annual Town Meeting Warrant.
Yes: Cooley, Dowd, Frail, KeaneNo: Nelson
From the minutes
“Motion by Mr. Keane that the Select Board vote to withdraw Article 28 - APPROPRIATE FOR QUIET ZONE from the Annual Town Meeting Warrant. Second: Ms. Frail. Approved 4-1. Mr. Nelson voted nay..” (Motion: Keane, second: Frail)
From the Needham Select Board’s official minutes, posted in the town’s Archive Center. We check every vote against the Select Board members present and quote the exact wording. MassVoter never grades or scores officials. Photos: Town of Needham, “Needham Select Board, April 2026–April 2027” member sheet.
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